Sahli breaks her own record

By: Rich Fisher
   Jay Gilligan promised that his Cranbury School track and field team would be worth getting excited about, and so far the Vikings have done nothing to prove their coach wrong.
   Dana Sahli broke the school and Greater Middlesex County long jump record in a meet with Community, Timberlane, Crossroads, Salk and Millstone at West Windsor-Plainsboro High North on Monday. Sahli broke her own school record of 14 feet, 4 inches, by launching herself a whopping 15-9.
   If that wasn’t enough, Sahli, Sam Hayden, Anna Shea and Adrienne Casimir broke the school 4×100 record with a time of 57.8 seconds. The previous mark of 58.3 was set last year by Sahli, Olivia Johnston, Shea and Zara Stasi.
   It appears Sahli is in the middle of all that is good for the Vikings so far.
   "Angela French, Dana Sahli and Morgan Lea are all high jumping 4-6, we’ve been dominating in this event in the girls division," Gilligan said. "We have taken first against every opponent and second against most of them.
   "Adrienne Casimir has been dominating in the 200 meters."
   For the boys, A.J. Dowers cut loose with an impressive 97-foot discus throw.
   "We’re off to a great start," Gilligan said. "They were all big schools and we more than held our own."
BASEBALL
   The Vikes got off to a rough start when Allentown took a 12-0 victory. Matt Alverez threw 3Ò innings in the loss.
   Colin Graydon’s triple led the offense, while Matt Weidner and Anthony Donadio each added singles.
   "There’s not much to say," coach Frank Silva said. "It’s just tough for these kids when they have no home field to play on."
TENNIS
   The Vikings put forth a strong effort against Princeton Day School before dropping a 3-2 decision on Tuesday. (The fourth doubles match was split due to a scoring problem). Cranbury played without Mike Mayes, who was sidelined with an injury.
   Pat Chen and Jason Trenkle lost at first and second singles against the Panthers’ savvy veterans.
   Will Rogers and Pat Hoerner won 6-2 6-3 at first doubles.
   "Will’s consistent and smart play along with Pat’s high energy all around the court gave them the win," coach Susan Paterson said.
   Aidan Milner and Amanda Chen had an outstanding debut at second doubles and won, 6-2, 6-3.
   "This is the first time they played together and it was great to see how well their playing styles matched up," Paterson said. "Amanda worked the baseline crosscourts and Aidan stepped in with solid net play and consistent volleying. It was a great match to watch."
   Ajay Vithala and Derek DelCore fell 6-3, 7-5 at third doubles.
   "The strength of their games are hard hitting topspin shots and huge serves which were not enough this time to pull out a win," Paterson said.
   Chris Allunario and Alex Pelle, partnering for the first time, found a good energy together and appeared to have won the match. But there was a scoring dispute and both coaches agreed on a draw.
   On Wednesday, Cranbury eked out wins in the close matches for a 5-1 victory over Hun.
   Rogers won, 6-4, 6-4, as he quickly figured out his opponent’s game that featured drop shots and chip shots.
   "With his good footwork and consistent play he was able to remain confident and determined in the long match," Paterson said.
   Pat Chen and Mayes won 6-2 6-2, playing "excellent doubles and consistently outplaying their opponents, especially at the net."
   Milner and Amanda Chen lost to Hun’s second doubles team, 6-1, 2-6 (8-6), but played a strong game.
   Trenkle and DelCore won in three sets, and Paterson noted "both boys came through with sharp angles and good topspin lobs to win critical points."
   Allunario and Hoerner won in straight sets "with good teamwork," Patterson said. "Chris was at the net and Pat ran down the lobs at the baseline. "
   Ajay Vithala and Ria Brij used the same tactics to win their match in straight sets.
   In JV play, Cranbury took a 5-0 win over PDS under the watch of assistant coach Barbara Rogers.
   John Marsh and Drew Holland won 8-2 while Ginny Rogers and Ethan Barron prevailed, 8-4.
   Ria Brij and Gabby Durand took an 8-1 win, while Matthew Keele and Patrick Stehn won 8-0.
   "The team has already shown improvement in their shots and working together in their doubles matches," Rogers said.